Darren Clarke talks on his phone, outside Haven for Hope trying to find a place to stay as he holds his 6-month-old baby, Da'Nya Clarke, in 105 degree weather on August 29, 2011. They were turned away from Haven for Hope because it was said there was no room at the shelter.

Darren Clarke talks on his phone, outside Haven for Hope trying to find a place to stay as he holds his 6-month-old baby, Da'Nya Clarke, in 105 degree weather on August 29, 2011. They were turned away from

Darren Clarke with his 6 month old baby Da'Nya, stand outside Haven for Hope where they were turned away because of lack of space, on a day with temperatures over 100 degrees.

Darren Clarke with his 6 month old baby Da'Nya, stand outside Haven for Hope where they were turned away because of lack of space, on a day with temperatures over 100 degrees.

Photo: Bob Owen, Bob Owen/rowen@express-news.net

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Darren Clarke, right, with his 6 month old baby Da'Nya, and Jacqueline Lopez and her kids Yaritza Hernandez, 3 and Richard Lopez, 6, sit in the shade of a small tree in front of Haven for Hope where the two families were turned because of no room, on a day with temperatures over 100 degrees.

Darren Clarke, right, with his 6 month old baby Da'Nya, and Jacqueline Lopez and her kids Yaritza Hernandez, 3 and Richard Lopez, 6, sit in the shade of a small tree in front of Haven for Hope where the two

Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya, have found shelter at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya, have found shelter at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Photo: BOB OWEN, Bob Owen/rowen@express-news.net

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Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya ride the elevator at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter.

Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya ride the elevator at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter.

Photo: BOB OWEN, Bob Owen/rowen@express-news.net

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Darren Clarke sits close by as his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya naps on a bed at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Darren Clarke sits close by as his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya naps on a bed at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Photo: BOB OWEN, Bob Owen/rowen@express-news.net

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Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya walks down a hall at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Darren Clarke with his 6-month-old daughter Da'Nya walks down a hall at The Salvation Army Emergency Family Shelter. Now, the young father wants to get a job to support his baby.

Photo: BOB OWEN, Bob Owen/rowen@express-news.net

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Photo of father, crying baby touched hearts

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Tiny Da'Nya Clarke sleeps on a clean, white bed in the cool quiet of an emergency shelter room at the Salvation Army, lost in those dreams only babies can dream.

Last Monday, she was crying in her father's arms outside Haven for Hope, the city's premier homeless shelter, which had turned them away, citing no room at the inn.

Pondering his rapidly diminishing options, Darren Clarke had tried to comfort his 6-month-old daughter as they stood in the paltry shade of a young tree, but it was a sweltering 104 degrees and her tears ran unabated.

A photograph of Da'Nya's anguish appeared on the front page of the San Antonio Express-News on Tuesday, triggering a similarly anguished response from some readers, who wrote or called with a common plea: What can be done? How can we help?

More than 20 readers contacted the paper to help the family.

Randy Moshier, a local financial analyst, offered to put up Clarke and his daughter in a motel for several days.

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“I have a daughter roughly the same age and I couldn't imagine what it must feel like for the father, not being able to provide a safe environment for his child,” he said. “It made me think, ‘Wow, there are thousands of people out there who can't do something as simple as get inside and get cool.'”

Moshier said reading that Haven for Hope was unable to take in the Clarkes also prompted him to contact the paper.

“I'm not the guy who is going to write in, but that just pushed it over the top,” he said.

Haven officials said the facility doesn't function as an emergency shelter for families. Family dorms, currently at capacity, are for those enrolled in the long-term transformation program. An overflow room can accommodate a small number of families for one night.

Orquidea Blain, whose husband runs a home health agency, was so moved by the photograph that she called offering Clarke a job as a driver or warehouse worker at the company.

“Just to see that baby, with her face full of tears and knowing how hot is was, it just broke my heart,” she said. “She is so innocent.”

More Information

Donations of such things as clothing or diapers can be taken to the Salvation Army Thrift Store, 1324 S. Flores St.

Donations of money can be sent to Salvation Army Metropolitan Area Command, 521 W. Elmira St., San Antonio, TX 78212.

“Why do they call it Haven for Hope?” he said. “There's no hope there. On the hottest day of the year, they turn a baby away? That's what really got to me. They need to throw out the drunks who live there and let that baby girl in.”

“I've been complaining about how hot it is, and here I sit in an air-conditioned house, with money in the bank,” said Fulton, who volunteers at Haven and also for Meals on Wheels. “It made me very concerned. How did we get to this place where there are people like that, who need our help?”

Even someone as far away as California was touched by the photograph.

“I saw it on the Internet and I just had to write in to offer help,” said Tom Lonero, a financial adviser in Woodland Hills, outside Los Angeles. “When it comes to charitable giving, I usually just take care of my family and friends, because I know where the money is going. But this is different. The photograph was just so poignant.”

Clarke, 29, recently arrived in San Antonio by bus from Mobile, Ala., with no money and only two cans of formula and half a pack of Pampers for his daughter. The baby's mother is still in Mobile, he said.

Clarke hopes his stint at the Salvation Army will signal a change in his admittedly troubled life.

If he adheres to the program, GED classes, help finding a job and long-term housing are all in the offing. He gazes at his daughter as she sleeps.

“I want her to be successful early in life, not have to wait until she's 29 to turn things around,” he said.

Da'Nya wakes, her large, dark eyes taking in her surroundings. Her father picks her up, nuzzles her.